Theatre

Entry requirements

The general University entrance requirement for registration for a research degree is normally a First or Upper Second Class Honours degree (1st or 2:1).

An interview will be required as part of the admissions process and will be conducted by at least two academic staff members remotely via MS Teams, Zoom, or face to face.

Applicants will be required to submit a personal statement and a research statement.
Please contact your proposed supervisor, where possible, to receive feedback and guidance on your research statement before submitting it. Learn how to prepare a research statement here.

Months of entry

January, April, October

Course content

Theatre research programme at Brunel University London benefits from a dedicated performance centre, sitting at the heart of our creative community and housing a fully equipped main theatre and studio theatre as well as rehearsal and recording studios. Our proximity to central London allows you to engage with an exciting range of performance practices and venues as well.

Theatre embraces an expanding research environment which advances a transdisciplinary vision connecting artistic performance, dance, spoken, physical and musical theatre, playwriting, digital art, and performance design, along with critical cultural performance and postcolonial studies.

The Theatre team's research activities are organised around several key areas of contemporary performance and involve staff participation in a number of high profile research projects:

• Physical theatre/dance, embodiment and performative relations with experimental poetry and writing practice
• Performances of the body and experimental performance, interconnecting theatre and performance studies, anthropology, sociology, and gender studies
• Intersections of bodies, cultures and identities in intercultural performance (including dance, critical race theory and contemporary South Asian dance)
• The use of the voice in writing and experimental writing by women
• Street theatre, British alternative theatre history, musical theatre, and intersections of gender and sexuality
• Commemorative practices, spectatorship and public performance of collective identity in times of social change
• Digital performance and digital cultures, and the intersections of interactive media technologies with immersive performance, wearable design, and digital scenographies
• Neuroaesthetics and the aesthetic potential of digitized technology for performance (artificial intelligence, motion capture, 3D modelling and animation, biotechnology)

Find out about the exciting research we do in this area. Browse profiles of our experts, discover the research groups and their inspirational research activities you too could be part of. We’ve also made available extensive reading materials published by our academics and PhD students.

Information for international students

English language requirements

Fees and funding

Brunel offers a number of funding options to research students that help cover the cost of their tuition fees, contribute to living expenses or both. Recently the UK Government made available the Doctoral Student Loans of up to £25,000 for UK and EU students and there is some funding available through the Research Councils. Many of our international students benefit from funding provided by their governments or employers. Brunel alumni enjoy tuition fee discounts of 15%.